A Merry Little Christmas
by Raine-Lily-Vandal
Summary: The Christmas Season is upon us once more and we get to take a peak into the lives of our favorite doctor and consulting detective as they prepare for the holidays. Established Johnlock, drabble(ish) fic with short chapters. (Inspired by gaytective's Christmas OTP Challenge on tumblr.)
1. Getting Out the Decorations

25 Days of Christmas  
Johnlock Edition

Day One  
Getting Out / Putting Up Decorations

Mrs. Hudson had been in and out of the flat all day, bustling about with her hands filled with decorations and lights and everything that could be described as "christmas-y". She had managed to convince Sherlock - with John's persuasion included - to allow them to decorate the flat for the holidays this year. He of course had no plans in participating, though he no doubt knew that he would be forced to when it came down to it. And so the older woman was pulling out all of the decorations with John's help while Sherlock stood off to the side with a calm displeasure emanating from him.

John shot him a bemused look as he entered the flat once more with the final box in his arms. "You could have helped, Sherlock," he pointed out idly, though knew that his mentioning it would do nothing in persuading the taller man to help them.

"I agreed to let you put them up John, not help," came the steadfast response as the consulting detective turned and picked up his violin before retreating into his room. Well, their room really as they'd been sharing it for close to three weeks now. The gentle sound of the violin came from within those walls, nearly blotted out by John's chuckling and Mrs. Hudson's amused annoyance.

John turned to Mrs. Hudson with a helpless smile, lifting his shoulders in a shrug before turning to open the first box and start to put things up. Lights were strung about the room and a small christmas village was put up on the mantle of the fireplace with the help of Mrs. Hudson. Neither of them noticed Sherlock's head peaking out of the room briefly before he started to play Christmas music, simple tunes that filtered through from his violin.

John couldn't help his smile at that point, his eyes flickering over to his boyfriend - as Sherlock had intentionally left the door of the room open. Even Sherlock wasn't immune to the holiday spirit, and he found himself humming along to the song as the decorations went up around the flat. Sherlock was contributing in his own way and that's all John could hope for. This christmas season was sure to be a pleasant one, something they needed dreadfully. And he was happy.

* * *

_Good evening everyone, Raine here. I thought I would join in on the holiday festivities by posting my own version of the 25 days of Christmas with our favorite couple. This is, indeed, my first Sherlock story posted on here, and I realize I'm a bit behind on the schedule but hey, what can you do when you're a college student eh? Anyway, I hope you guys enjoy this drabble-y fic as it goes and I'll catch up as fast as I can. Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays everyone!_

_Auto Disclaimer: (applies from here on out) I, Raine-Lily, do not own anything from BBC Sherlock or of the works from Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. I am clever, but not that clever. No copyright infringement is meant._


	2. Christmas Cards

25 Days of Christmas  
Johnlock Edition

Day Two  
Making Christmas Cards

"Sherlock!" John called as he entered the flat, nudging the door shut with his hip. He was laden down with groceries again and expected his boyfriend to come and actually help him this time. They had managed to set up a sort of pattern for when the consulting detective would come and help him. Around the holidays was one such time, mostly because there was so much extra shopping to do.

He spied the familiar curly head of his flatmate as Sherlock exited their room, coming into the kitchen with a rather disgruntled look. John merely smiled sweetly at him before gesturing with one hand to the other part of the bags he hadn't yet gotten to. He reached in and pulled out a few more items to place them in the fridge - easily avoiding the shelf he had managed to call the experiment shelf. They had planned on a mini fridge for Sherlock's experiments, but they hadn't gotten around to it yet. Also known as Sherlock had drug him all over London on chases for the past few days. Since he had decorated the flat actually.

Amusement shot through the army doctor and he chuckled, turning back around to put away the dry goods when he spotted Sherlock eyeing a colorful box that he'd pulled out of the bag by his feet. He crossed the kitchen, leaning just right next to Sherlock so that he could see what he had picked up.

"John what are these?" Sherlock asked, turning his head to look at the shorter man.

The blonde moved to get a better look before laughing. "Christmas cards, Sherlock. You know, you send them out to family and friends?"

"Yes John I know what a christmas card is but where on Earth did you get the picture?" he asked, scowling at him.

John grinned and plucked the box from his fingers neatly. "You were sleeping," he responded simply, pressing a light kiss to Sherlock's cheek before leaving the kitchen. "And you can't destroy these while I'm sleeping either, Sherlock, I will know!" he called back, having caught the tail end of Sherlock's grumbling. John merely smiled and hid them away in his closet, thoroughly amused by the glare that Sherlock sent his way. After all, it wasn't every year he could send out cards of a sleeping Sherlock Holmes with a santa hat on his head now was it?


	3. Snuggling in Front of the Fire with Tea

25 Days of Christmas  
Johnlock Edition

Day Three  
Snuggling in Front of the Fireplace with Tea

The crackling of the fireplace was a welcome sound after spending his day outside in the chilly air and the threat of snow hanging over their heads. He hummed a christmas tune under his breath as he pulled off his outer coat and unwound his scarf, blue eyes scanning across the flat and smiling slightly as he realized that his boyfriend must have been in the kitchen. That would of course explain the slight clinking he heard coming from that direction, so Sherlock was up to another experiment. John chuckled and went into the kitchen, pressing a quick kiss to Sherlock's cheek before starting to make himself some tea. It would be good to warm up after he was outside all day.

The back of his neck prickled slightly as he was aware of Sherlock's eyes on him and he sighed slightly. "Can I help you or are you going to keep staring at me?" he questioned, looking over his shoulder with a cross between a smirk and smile tipping the corners of his lips.

Sherlock hummed lightly, his eyes flickering up to meet John's with a smirk twitching on his lips. "I do enjoy staring at you," he said, chuckling lowly at the blush that lit up his blogger's cheeks before he leaned back. "However, I have something I planned and you're coming with me, so you might not want to start on that tea yet," he finished.

John arched a brow but placed the tea back in the cupboard. "Care to tell me where we're going then?" he asked, though he was loathe to exit the warmth of their flat.

"Experiment," was the only answer he got in reply before Sherlock was out of the kitchen and he could hear him putting on his coat.

The army doctor chuckled and ran a hand through his hair before sighing, following the consulting detective and putting his coat back on followed by his scarf and gloves. "You do realize that if we go to Bart's Molly may not be happy to stay with us there," he said, trying to reason with the man that was already bounding down the steps. He sighed, he hadn't actually expected a response but it would have been nice. But he followed him down the steps and gave Mrs. Hudson a small smile as he was pulled out of the flat by an impatient Sherlock.

He was practically shoved into the waiting taxi and he couldn't help the eye roll that followed. "Sherlock, really-"

The taller man cut him off with a look before Sherlock settled back in his seat, giving the cabbie the order to go to Bart's. It didn't take long - despite London traffic - and Sherlock quickly gave the cabbie the correct about of money before exiting with John at his side. He strode into the building like he owned the place and John was left taking quicker steps to keep up with his strides.

When the came into the morgue John gave Molly an apologetic smile while she stood there looking at Sherlock with a mix of her usual amusement and annoyance. "Sherlock, why are you here?"

"I have an experiment to conduct, Molly, I need a body," Sherlock said, folding his hands behind his back.

The auburn haired woman arched a brow and crossed her arms in front of her chest. "Sherlock, I don't have any bodies for you. And I'm going out. No, I'm not going to cancel for you," she said, holding up a finger to cut him off. "Go home, Sherlock. Poor John looks frozen," she said, eyes flickering over to the man in question and giving him a small smile before she looked back at Sherlock. "Gone on then, go home. I've been planning this day for a week, you can wait another day to do your experiment. Maybe someone will have died for you then," she said.

Sherlock was still gaping at her when John dragged him out of there laughing. By the time they had got back to Baker Street, Sherlock was pouting and so John placed him on the couch and went to make tea. He wasn't surprised when he heard the thump that signified the man falling over on the couch to lay across it. A small smile curled his lips and he carried the tea cups out to the living room, placing one down within Sherlock's reach. He then lifted the detective's head up off the couch and sat down, letting Sherlock's head rest on his lap.

Setting his cup to the side, John gently carded his fingers through Sherlock's curls and was rewarded with a hum of appreciation. A smile bloomed across his features and he turned his attention to the fire that was happily crackling. Even if Sherlock didn't get to do his experiment, cuddling in front of the fire wasn't so bad. And John's smile only broadened when the detective turned his head and nuzzled into John's touch and murmured three words that always set John's heart racing happily.

"Love you, John."

* * *

_I just wanna say thank you so much guys for the views and the reviews and the follows and favorites. :) Every time I see one it completely makes my day and I'm glad that you guys are enjoying these little stories. With that, a teaser for next chapter is that the prompt is Buying and/or Wrapping Gifts. Raine out!_


	4. Buying Presents

25 Days of Christmas  
Johnlock Edition

Day Four  
Shopping For and/or Wrapping Gifts

It had taken a lot of negotiating for him to get Sherlock out the door, or more correctly a lot of threatening. Now he knew that shopping wasn't Sherlock's ideal way to spend time, but it was necessary around Christmas. They had the gift exchange after all! So while John would swear up and down that he had to drag Sherlock out of there kicking and screaming - Sherlock would always protest that he was not kicking nor was he screaming - he knew that it was for a good cause. It would do the detective some good to pick out the gifts for those closest to them. Really it was only for Molly, Lestrade, Mycroft - if John could convince him to get something for his annoying elder brother -, and Mrs. Hudson.

He grabbed Sherlock's hand to stop him from running off on him, giving the consulting detective an amused look when he scowled at John. "Really, I'm not going to leave now," he bit out, grudgingly letting John keep ahold of him.

"I don't doubt that, but I'd like to keep the precaution anyway," John retorted idly before tugging the detective into a small gift store that looked like it might have something nice for Molly. He wandered through the rows, occasionally stopping to look at something with Sherlock even though the man declared that most of these things were unnecessary. Still, it was the thought that counted behind a gift and he hummed lightly when he picked something up and turned it over in his hands. "Sherlock? How about this for Molly?" he questioned, looking over at his boyfriend while holding up the small snow globe.

The younger man directed his attention it before a small furrow formed between his brows. "Why would she like a snow globe?" he asked.

"Because they're small, easy to care for, and versatile. Paperweights or decoration for example," John said with a faint smile. "I think she would enjoy it," he said.

Sherlock gave a thoughtful hum before looking away, his own version of an agreement. It sounded like this would have something to do with sentiment, a subject he still wasn't fully versed on after years of believing it was pointless. Then John came into his life and flipped that around, which reminded the brunette that he needed to pick up John's present still as well. However he would have to ditch his boyfriend in order to do that.

John's hand fell into his again and he was pulled to the register so that they could buy the small snow globe for Molly before they were out the door again and wandering through the shops in order to pick up gifts for the rest of their friends. It took far too long in Sherlock's opinion but at the very least it was done and he wouldn't have to bother with it anymore. Now he merely had to collect John's present and in order to do that he had to lose John. He opened his mouth to suggest they split up to finish the gift shopping when John spoke first.

"We can split up here to get the gifts for each other. Meet back here in an hour?" the blonde questioned, looking up at his boyfriend with a loving kindness warming his blue eyes.

Sherlock had to pause a moment to collect himself after getting caught in John's gaze before he gave a slow nod. "Yes, that will work," he said, sliding his hands into his coat pockets. John nodded to affirm that, rising up to give the detective a quick kiss before he walked off quickly to go find Sherlock a gift. Said man watched John walk away for a moment before he turned around and moved through the people on the street to reach the store that he had found John's present at before, opening the door with the slight tinkle of the bell the only thing giving him away.

The detective stepped over to the counter, looking out of place in the shop that was clearly designed for couples that were looking to getting engaged. He got a couple of odd looks - was that really Sherlock Holmes in a jewelry shop? There was no robbery here for him to investigate - but he brushed them off like he did everything he deemed unimportant.

The shop attendant looked up and grinned at him. "Mr. Holmes! A pleasure seeing you, just one moment and I'll grab your order," he said with a bright smile before he slid into the back room. It took him only a few moments to return (3 minutes and 27 seconds to be precise) and pass over a brightly wrapped object. He smiled brightly at the detective again. "'Ere you are, Mr. Holmes. I wish you the best of luck in your life," he said.

Sherlock looked at the package in his hand and his lips curled into his familiar half smirk. "Thank you," he said simply before tucking the package into his pocket and walking away. He was quite certain that this would be the most memorable Christmas for his blogger in a long time, and he was very much looking forward to making it so.

* * *

_I had originally intended on getting this out last night, but school unfortunately stopped that from happening. But alas, it is here now. And really cute in my opinion, but I am the author and therefore biased. Anyone have any ideas on what Sherlock is planning for John? :)  
_

_Thank you again, everyone, for the reviews and the views and the follows. They make me all giddy inside! And outside - usually resulting in my scaring people off. Oh well. I hope your day is fantastic! Raine out._

_-Raine_


	5. Buying the Tree

25 Days of Christmas  
Johnlock Editions

Day Five  
Buying the Christmas Tree

"Sherlock…"

"No."

"But Sherlock, dear, it's tradition. You can't have Christmas without a Christmas tree," Mrs. Hudson reasoned, placing her hands on her hips as she stared down the consulting detective.

The brunette arched a brow in response as he lounged back on his chair. "You didn't have a tree last year, nor the year before that. I fail to see why this year must be any different," he said. He was rather irritable, there had been no good cases recently and he had even taken to snapping at John when the boredom became too much. But at the very least he hadn't started shooting the walls yet, that much Mrs. Hudson and John could be thankful for.

"But its your first Christmas back from the dead and all, and now you're together with John. You have to have your first Christmas as a couple with a tree, not to mention it'll mark one year you two have been together," the old woman stated, very firmly at that. She wasn't budging from the subject and Sherlock was beginning to realize that. He was about to hold his ground against his landlady when John had to put in his two cents.

"A tree would be nice Sherlock."

Bloody hell, he couldn't say no to John. So it was with a sigh that Sherlock sat up and then stood, looking over at John as if to ask if he was coming before sweeping out of the flat as if he hadn't been fighting going for the past twenty minutes.

John gave Mrs. Hudson a faint smile before grabbing his coat and running to catch up with his boyfriend - who had already exited the flat and was looking for a taxi. He chuckled faintly and stood next to Sherlock as he finally hailed a taxi, letting the two of them in before they were off to the tree farm. He relaxed, gently placing his hand over Sherlock's and lacing their fingers together as he looked out the window. After a few moments he felt Sherlock's head fall onto his shoulder and he smiled, resting his head against the detective's gently.

"Do you really want a tree?" Sherlock asked after a moment, his voice muffled by the leather on the shoulder of John's coat.

John chuckled faintly in response, pressing a kiss to the top of Sherlock's head. "Trees are part of the Christmas tradition Sherlock, and one of my favorite parts. Well, decorating it anyway, but we need the tree before we can decorate it," he said with a laugh.

Sherlock hummed in acknowledgement. "Then I suppose a tree won't be so bad," he said softly.

John smiled and pressed a kiss to his cheek. "I love you Sherlock," he said in response, settling against the man better for the remainder of the ride. Once they had reached the tree farm they exited the taxi and gave the cabbie the fare before they entered the farm. John took Sherlock's hand again, leading him around to look at the trees that were lined up nice and neat. They moved through the rows with Sherlock offering occasional comments before John's eyes alighted on it.

The one. That tree was perfect. It was the epitome of all Christmas trees and even John could feel his eyes widening as he looked at it. It stood taller than him by a good eight inches - meaning it was taller than Sherlock by two - and it was perfect. "Sherlock," he said, glancing at his boyfriend before pointing at the tree. "I do believe that's the tree this year," he said.

Sherlock let his eyes rove over the evergreen before he nodded faintly. "Alright then. I'll go find the keeper and we'll arrange for it to come to Baker's Street," he said, sliding his hand out of John's. He gave John a smile before he strode away, hearing John rustling among the branches as he attempted to get the tree out from the group. A chuckle slipped out and he smiled fondly at the thought of his blogger before he tracked down the keeper. Once the tree was paid for he arranged for it to be transported to Baker's Street - none of the cabs would carry a tree after all - and then he went back to find John.

What he found was quite amusing. In his absence John had managed to free the tree but now he was trying to keep the other ones standing because the tree they had selected had been holding up the others. He rolled his eyes and chuckled, crossing over to quickly prop the trees up before turning to his boyfriend. "Well then, the tree will be brought to Baker's Street in the hour, shall we go?" he asked.

John looked at him for a moment before laughing. "Thank you, and yes," he said, letting the tree be passed off to the keeper before taking Sherlock's hand again. "Come on, let's go home and I'll make tea," he said, giving a bright smile to the detective before he walked out of the farm with Sherlock at his side.

* * *

_So yeah, this was supposed to be out yesterday but it fought with me tooth and nail. I hope it was okay, I'm not too sure what I think about this one. Anyway, I hope you all enjoyed it! :) And that the characters were in character. Haha. Have a merry Thursday everyone, hopefully I can get another one up. But finals are upon me and that means I have less time to write. Until this weekend. :D Merry Thursdays and may your day be lovely!  
_

_-Raine_


	6. Decorating the Christmas Tree

25 Days of Christmas  
Johnlock Edition

Day 6  
Decorating the Christmas Tree

Sure enough, the hour after they had arrived back at Baker's Street, the tree had arrived in all its bushy glory and trailing pine needles behind it. Needless to say, Sherlock wasn't entirely pleased with it though he put up with it simply because John was so happy to be putting it up in the tree stand. Even Mrs. Hudson was in the Christmas spirit, having brought up some of her fresh made biscuits and a tree skirt for them to use. The consulting detective merely perched himself in his seat and watched them start to decorate the tree.

John was more than happy to do what he could, although he knew – Sherlock did too but he'd be damned if he brought it up – that he couldn't reach the top branches and so would have to call in Sherlock's help eventually. But he let the detective sit there for a time being and he turned his attention to the dark green tree that needed to be decorated. He started with the lights – white ones – and began to trail them along the bottom branches of tree, winding the strand through the branches and wrapping around the occasional branch to secure the hold of the lights. It was going great until he got to the top of the tree and he couldn't reach any higher.

"Sherlock? Can you come help me with this?" he called over his shoulder, turning slightly to look at the man with his dark hair. He gave a small smile, hoping that it was apologetic enough for pulling Sherlock into this despite the fact they both knew it was inevitable. His smile grew though when he unfolded himself from his seat and came over to help John wordlessly, his taller frame easily able to reach the highest parts of the trees and finish wrapping the lights around the tree branches.

John reached back into the bucket of decorations, pulling out the garland and starting on that while Sherlock finished the lights. Once it got too high for the veteran, Sherlock took over and wrapped the top of the tree with the garland. It was an unspoken agreement between them that when John handed him something it went to the top of the tree and they quickly had the tree looking like an actual Christmas tree.

Mrs. Hudson bustled back into the flat and smiled brightly as she saw the tree in its complete glory. A package was nestled in her grasp and she passed it over to John with a bright smile. "It's an early present, since it deserves to go on the tree this year," she said.

John smiled and wrapped her in one-armed hug with a soft thank you before he opened the package. Resting inside on a little bed of tissue paper with a glass ornament ball that had two figurines inside it, miniature forms of John and Sherlock trapped in the process of running but they were smiling as they did. John couldn't help but laugh at the sight of it, placing it on the tree reverently. "Thank you Mrs. Hudson, it's wonderful," he said, smiling at the old woman.

She tutted lightly and left their flat, but there was a bright smile on her lips.

Sherlock stepped back over to John, the final part of the tree resting in his hands. The tree topper, a ceramic angel that had been in John's family and something Harry had given to him in her last bout of soberness. He gave a smile to John, a tender thing that wasn't often shown on his features before he reached up and placed it on top of the tree. Now the tree was complete.

The couple smiled at it together – Sherlock maybe a little begrudgingly but even he had to admit that the tree looked nice – and John looped his arm around Sherlock's waist and leaned his head on the taller man's shoulder. "Thank you Sherlock," he said softly, and it meant so many things that Sherlock understood.

Sherlock looked down at his blonde doctor and chuckled lightly before tipping John's head up to gently kiss him. "You're welcome, John," he murmured, happiness warming the depths of his blue eyes.

* * *

_I swear, this chapter fought me tooth and nail and I struggled with it in order to get it out. Should have been out days ago, but college hit me pretty hard with finals and then my Astronomy teacher decided it would be a good idea to assign homework during Finals Week. Anyway, here it is! Not as full of fluff as I wish, and probably not as good as I wish it could have been. Le sigh._

_Also! To answer a question brought up during the last chapter on the anniversary of John and Sherlock falling on Christmas but this one being their first Christmas together since he's been back. Sherlock came back on Christmas of last year, but super late at night so he wasn't part of the Christmas Festivities. So technically it's their second Christmas together, but the first time they get to do all of it together, which is what Mrs. Hudson was referring to. I hope that cleared it up a bit. :D_

_Hope everyone is having a fantastic day and I'll try to get a few more chapters up. :)_

_-Raine_


	7. Mistletoe

25 Days of Christmas  
Johnlock Edition

Day 7  
Mistletoe

Two days after the tree had gone up, John had been called into work and he had gone which left Sherlock in the flat up to his own inventions. Today was different though, he wasn't pressed with the desire to experiment, which saved the kitchen from a disastrous explosion more likely than not, and yet there were no cases to be had for him to solve from the comforts of his home or on the field. It seemed that even the villains of London were taking a short break. Which left Sherlock with doing a few things. He could sit about all day, maybe with one of his books, or he could try to surprise John. The latter was always fun but could be dangerous, whereas the former was safe but could be boring. Ah the choices he had to make.

His eyes alighted on a box of Christmas decorations that was stashed in the corner of the room and his curiosity grew. He approached it casually, flicking open the lid with feigned disinterest – despite the fact there was no one at home – and letting his gaze roam over the content. A few idle strands of light, some broken ornaments, and then some tinsel and garland. Then his eyes landed on a smaller bag in the corner and when he pulled it out he couldn't help but smirk.

He opened the bag and started to hang up the contents. Surprise John it was.

So needless to say, when John arrived home from work a couple hours later he was pleasantly surprised with a breath-stealing, soul-snatching kiss from Sherlock. When he inquired about the occasion behind it, the detective merely lifted a hand and pointed towards the ceiling. Hanging there innocently above the door was a small sprig of mistletoe. John could only smile as he pulled the detective in for another kiss, more than happy with this particular surprise.

* * *

_I'm just going to say right now, I'm so sorry for the short length on this one, but I did say that there would be short chapters. Also, this one fought me at every turn. For some reason mistletoe and Johnlock just weren't lining up for me. But I hope you all still enjoy it, and thank you for all the views and follows and reviews. It really warms my heart whenever I see them in my email. :)_

_-Raine_


	8. Making Snowmen

25 Days of Christmas  
Johnlock Edition

Day Eight  
Making Snowmen

The snow had been falling steadily for the past two days, over 48 hours of consistent white flakes dropping to the London streets and causing the streets and buildings to be coated in white. The streets somehow managed to stay clear but the yards and parks in London were buried under almost two feet of snow by this point. The white fluff had finally stopped coming down just an hour ago, and children were running around outside to play in the snow and make things like snow angels and snow men. There was even the occasional snow ball fight to be had.

This day found John and Sherlock outside after the remnants of a case that had taken Sherlock only hours to solve. Really the case had only been a three - four at absolute best - but Sherlock had been growing bored and John wasn't about to let him start shooting the walls again. He'd already done that once in the past year and Sherlock had nearly given Mrs. Hudson a heart attack. Therefore John was resolved to drag Sherlock out of the flat if need be. And now they were done with the case - after much grouching from Sherlock over the simplicity of it - and John had convinced him to walk back instead of taking a taxi. After all, it was a gorgeous day now that the snow had stopped and the veteran planned to take full advantage of it.

The sidewalks had been cleared and salted to stop the ice from forming, making it safe to walk on them without worry for bashing open one's head on the pavement. A good thing assuredly. So they took to walking side by side calmly like they always moved together. Something about the fluffy snow was bringing out the long buried child in John though, calling to him as he stopped outside a park to scoop some of the snow into his gloved hands, rolling it around in a ball. Sherlock hadn't stopped walking but he did turn back to see what was taking John so long just in time to get hit with a snowball to the face.

Sputtering, the detective wiped the snow from his eyes and arched a brow at John. "And why did you do that?" he questioned.

John grinned in response, not answering his lover verbally and instead he picked up another ball of snow. Instead of throwing it this time though he pushed it along the top of the snow gently and rolled it, forming a larger ball that continued to grow. "Come help me with this Sherlock," he said, walking into the park and pushing the ball of snow farther. He felt his lover come up beside him, footsteps crunching in the snow before a light sigh came from his right. But a smile tugged at his lips as he saw gloved hands beginning to build another snowball to place on the base that John was building.

They worked together and soon enough there was a pristine snow man towering over them, decorated with things they had collected from the ground. A few children had run over to help them with the finishing touches. A couple of sticks for the arms, one held a rock for the nose and another offered a couple of berries for the mouth. John smiled, leaning against his lover as one final child placed a hat on top of the snowman and then wrapped a scarf around it's neck.

Sherlock hummed happily at the final product, sliding his arm around John's waist without really thinking about it. He kissed the top of his blogger's head gently before letting his hand drop to lace his fingers through the older man's. "Come on, let's get home John," he said.

The blonde turned his head and nodded slightly. "Alright Sherlock, home it is," he said with a small smile before they started back on their way to 221B Baker Street.

* * *

_I again want to apologize for how long this has taken to get out. Unfortunately when my keyboard arrived it was broken, so I've commandeered my mother's computer in order to get some of this writing done. I'm afraid I still don't know when updates will be regular, but I'm praying it will be soon since school is gonna start up again soon and it's not fun trying to write papers with a broken keyboard. Really really not fun. But yeah, I hope you guys liked this. :D Enjoy!_

_-Raine_


	9. Wearing Ugly Christmas Jumpers

25 Days of Christmas  
Johnlock Edition

Day Nine

Wearing Ugly Christmas Jumpers

There were jumpers sitting innocently on John's chair, draped over the union jack pillow like they had all the right in the world to be there. But they didn't, they most certainly had no place in this flat. In fact, Sherlock planned on using them in the next experiment he threw together, and it would involve fire and possibly a decent amount of lighter fluid. How much of the liquid needed to be soaked into the wool before it would combust into ashes immediately? He fully intended to find out. They were a supposed present from dear Harry - he scoffed to think of it that way - but he was certain they were used to make fools out of people more than often. Because honestly, who in their functioning mind would wear a jumper that had a glowing red dot to symbolize Rudolph on it.

He cast the jumpers another hateful glare before he turned and stalked back to the bedroom he shared with John. "John," he said calmly, leaning against the doorjamb as his lover twisted in the blankets to look at Sherlock with bleary eyes.

"Huhm? What is it 'Lock?" he asked, fighting back a yawn and stretching slightly.

"Your sister sent us jumpers for christmas. May I burn them? They're really quite horrendous," he said, crossing his arms over his chest after tucking his bathrobe closer around himself.

"Hmm… what- no!" John was suddenly very awake, sitting up in bed and staring at his partner with disbelief and amusement fighting for dominance in his features. "You don't burn presents Sherlock, even if they look horrendous," he said.

Sherlock pouted lightly in response before turning on his heel to pick up the offending objects. He tossed them onto the bed next to John and one of them - he thought it was the one with the santa on it - started to flash and move and - oh dear God it was _singing_. He wrinkled his nose in distaste and even John seemed put off by the jumpers, reaching out to press a button on the jumper to make it stop.

"We still can't burn them," he said, looking over at Sherlock with a firm set to his jaw. Damn, there was no getting around that one. But then Sherlock noticed the playful look in his eyes as he picked up the jumpers and checked the size. "However, we can definitely regift them."

A slow smirk curled Sherlock's lips and he kissed John on the cheek gently. "I take it you know who to send them to?" he said.

John grinned in response to the question and pushed the jumpers to the side with a nod.

Christmas that year found Greg Lestrade and Mycroft Holmes each sporting a new horrendous looking Christmas jumper.


	10. Baking Holiday Treats

25 Days of Christmas

Johnlock Edition

Day Ten

Baking Holiday Treats

It had been an odd day for John and Sherlock, having had themselves a lay in simply because neither could be bothered to remove themselves from their bed and make an attempt to move around and do things. They had simply laid in bed and cuddled, sometimes talking or sometimes reading together. But the needs of the transport had pulled John from the bed, his stomach was talking and he needed food. One would think by this point he couldn't be surprised by anything in the kitchen, but what he found still managed to be surprised by. Sitting on the counter, innocently laid out, was everything to make cookies. _Christmas_ cookies. Now John liked Christmas cookies, but he couldn't remember a time when he had had them when Sherlock was in his life. In fact, he hadn't even attempted to make them that first Christmas he'd known Sherlock, or any of the subsequent ones. So why were the ingredients just sitting there as if waiting for someone, and how had they gotten there? Neither of them had been out of bed until now.

Footsteps behind him alerted him to the appearance of Sherlock, a large and warm hand curling lightly around his side as Sherlock pulled him into his side. "I heard from Harry that you enjoyed Christmas cookies, so I arranged with Mrs. Hudson to have the stuff to make them brought up today," Sherlock said lightly as if it wasn't a big deal. Which with anyone else it probably wouldn't have been such a big deal, but still remained the fact that John hadn't made Christmas cookies in years and here Sherlock came with everything because he's heard that he'd like them.

John couldn't help the faint smile that quirked on his lips at that as he turned his head to regard his boyfriend. "Thank you, Sherlock. Really, truly. This… this. It… It means a lot," he said, looking back at the cookie ingredients. He turned his head suddenly and pulled Sherlock down to give him a quick kiss. "Come on you lovable git, let's make cookies," he said with a brilliant smile that made Sherlock's heart stutter for a moment. The ex-military doctor set to work, pulling the recipe from memory and starting to mix together the batter.

Sherlock helped him roll out the dough and they cut shapes out of it, putting them on cookie sheets and transferring them to the oven. The timer was set to go off and John leaned back against the counter, smiling at Sherlock gently. "Thank you again, 'Lock," he said.

Sherlock merely smiled at him.

* * *

_This was a long time in the making but I do put partial blame on the fact that I'm now back at college with many classes that require mass amounts of reading. However, I hope you all find this story to your satisfaction. Thank you all again for all the reviews and the views and the subscribing. It warms my heart every day and reminds me why I do this - other than to torture myself with the creative writing classes in school. Love you all. _

_-Raine_


	11. Snogging in Front of the Fireplace

25 Days of Christmas  
Johnlock Edition

Day Eleven  
Snogging in Front of the Fireplace

The cookies from earlier were successfully baked and decorated with only a minor mess to clean up afterwards - namely frosting on the cookies ( and the counters and the wall ) because it was no easy job to frost the cookies. But now it was over with and both men were relaxing in front of their fireplace with a plate of cookies to share and a cup of tea each. They'd opted to sit on cushions on the floor, it was more comfortable for the moment. Sherlock was curled into John's side, head resting on his shoulder with his blogger's hand running through his curls idly. Both of them were occupied by the books they were reading but small moments happened where one of them would shift and pull the other closer to press a gentle kiss to a temple or a neck.

Really it was just a good day for them to be cuddly, there were no cases coming in and they could relax with each other. They spent a lot of their time this way, just curled up together. It was their own form of releasing the stress or the adrenaline from chasing the bad guys through the streets of London.

John found himself pulled out of his book by the feeling of Sherlock's lips pressed into the hollow of his throat. A light hum slipped out and he gently pulled his fingers through the man's curls again with a small smile. He turned his head slightly and pressed a light kiss against his forehead before Sherlock was lifting his head and their lips met. It was sweet and gentle really, something they found themselves exchanging quite often.

As was per usual for the blonde he often found himself wondering how he somehow managed to come into this crazy man's life. How the cards had managed to lay themselves just right that he somehow found Sherlock and managed to become his friend and then his lover. But for today, for this moment, he didn't let his mind wander. He stayed present and only smiled into the kiss as he pulled his lover closer to him, fingers tangling more into the dark curls.

That night there were two hearts beating in sync, and they had been since John and Sherlock first met in that laboratory at Bart's.


End file.
